Gift wrap work station

ABSTRACT

A work station for gift wrapping comprising a compartment for storage of rolls of paper, wrapping accessories and tools, a top surface for placement of objects to be wrapped, a removable roll holding means attached to an end panel, a tape dispenser holding means attached to another end panel, an end and a bottom panel. The work station is set up by installing the roll holding means on one of the end panels, and by placing a common scotch tape dispenser on a holding means that allows a user to easily dispense tape from the dispenser. A roll of paper is removed the compartment and easily inserted onto the roll holding means, and during a dispensing operation keeps the edge of the paper aligned with the adjacent end panel. An article for wrapping is placed on top of the paper after it has been dispensed and is cut to length and width using a common letter opener type cutter. Tape is easily pulled from tape dispenser while holding the wrapped article. The roll, the roll holding means, and the tape dispenser are easily removed and stored in the compartment ready to use for the next occasion. The work station may have handle for carrying or storing on a wall.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to new and useful improvements forgift wrapping.

[0002] It is a relatively common experience to have a need to gift wrapboxes and articles bought as presents and gifts for birthdays,graduation, anniverseries, etc, but especially during the Christmas andHannakuh holidays. It is also a common occurance to gift wrap whereverit may be convenient, practical, or the easiest to do—on the living roomfloor, a kitchen table, or on a bed in the privacy of a closed bedroom.It is also common to be surrounded by numerous long rolls of wrappingpaper and the gifts to be wrapped, name tags, a tape dispenser,scissors, bows, and ribbons. As the packages are progessively wrapped,it is common to switch to different colored and decorative paper insteadof using the same paper for all packages. The typical consumer iscontinually measuring, cutting, applying tape, many times untilfinished, only to find himself surrounded by partly used rolls, partlyused webs, and equipment that must be put away for the next occasion.Thus there is a need to make this frequent experience more user friendlyand convenient.

[0003] Heretofore, the prior art has addressed this problem onlypartially and unsuccessfully. There are numerous organizers for the giftwrap rolls, ribbon, bows, scissors, tape dispensers, etc., but this doesnot address the problems of efficiency and methodology. In U.S. Pat. No.5,480,080 to Ferguson, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,850,960 to Cadwell, and inU.S. Pat. No. 5,322,201 to Garr, the prior art teaches improvements fortearing and cutting wrapping paper from the long rolls, but this alsodoes not help the overall problem.

[0004] In U.S. Pat. No. 5,301,854, to Scobey, a storing and dispensingcontainer is disclosed that addresses some of these unsolved problemswith gift wrapping. This invention discloses a method for storing therolls inside a carton that is equipped with a cutting edge for cuttingthe wrap once it is dispenced from the carton. A roll holding meanscomprising a long rod held between slots on each end of the cartonallows dispensing of the paper. Additionally, it provides a method tohold a tape dispenser to allow easy application of scotch tapedispenser. The invention does not provide a firm, hard surface that isrequired for simple and efficient wrapping It also requires one to tearthe wrap from the roll before placing the package on the apron andpaper. This requires additional handling of the paper, of the package tobe wrapped and the container dispenser. Thus the present invention isconcerned with several improvements in the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] Accordingly, besides the advantages of the existing prior artseveral objects and advantages of the present invention are:

[0006] to provide a portable, light weight work station with a surfacethat can be used for supporting packages during the wrapping process;

[0007] to provide a portable light weight means to store and organizerolls of wrapping paper, wrap accessories such as bows, ribbon, nametags, tape dispensers, scissors and other items;

[0008] to provide an improved, user friendly, method of dispensing froma variety of gift wrapping paper wound on rolls,

[0009] to provide a visual aid in measuring the proper length and widthof wrapping paper to be cut from a wound roll of paper;

[0010] to provide an improved, user friendly, method of tearing andcutting sheets of wrap paper from wound rolls of paper;

[0011] to provide a user friendly method for holding, securing, andremoving a tape dispenser attached to the work station;

[0012] to provide an improved, user friendly, method of tape dispensingwhile gift wrapping;

[0013] to provide a work station that allows a package to besimultaneously wrapped with paper from a wrap dispenser while beingsupported on a work surface and to cut the paper after the wrappingprocess.

[0014] to provide a simple and economical method to install and remove aroll holding means from the work station;

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of theinvention showing several features of the work station: rolls of giftpaper in storage, a roll of paper installed on the roll holding meansand being partially dispensed on the top surface, and the tapedispenser.

[0016]FIG. 2 is a plan view of FIG. 1 showing the roll holding means andthe tape dispenser holding means. A roll of paper and a tape dispenseris shown in phantom.

[0017]FIG. 3 is an end view of FIG. 1 showing a left and right tapedispenser holding means, with a tape dispenser on the right holding tab.

[0018]FIG. 4 is a side view of a typical letter opener type of cutterused with the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0019] According to one aspect of the present invention as shown in FIG.1, FIG. 2, and FIG. 3, a container or work station 10, comprises endpanels 11,14, and 17, a top surface 18, and bottom panel 12. One end isleft open for receiving rolls of gift wrapping paper 13 and other itemsuseful for wrapping. Initially all rolls 13 are stored in thecompartment 10 of the invention, along with other tools, such as aletter opener type cutter, a scotch tape dispenser 30, scissors,ribbons, bows, name tags, etc. In FIG. 4 a letter opener type of cutter35 is shown and is a necessary item and supplied with the invention. Itis assumed that the cutter will be supplied along with the removable,attachable roll holding means 15 and 16 and furnished in a cloth typebag with a draw string for storing and safe keeping. Additional itemsuseful for wrapping can be placed in the bag and its contents can thenbe put in the compartment and be ready for use.

[0020] When one is ready to wrap a gift, the work station is first setup by installing the two components of the roll holding means, 15 and16. These are preferrably made from {fraction (3/16)}″-¼″ steel rod andare simply inserted into receiving holes provided in the end panel 14.Next an ordinary scotch tape dispenser 30 is placed on one of thecylindrical holding tabs 31. The tape dispenser 30 is provided with ahole approximately 1″ in diameter and is inserted onto the taperedholding tab 31. The tab is located vertically so that the bottom edge ofthe dispenser 30, when placed on the tab 31, rests on the surfacesupporting the container. The tab is also located horizontally so thatdispenser extends beyond the end panel. The tape dispenser is now heldfirmly in place and allows easy one handed tape dispensing. For lefthanded dispensing, a left hand tab 31 may also be used.

[0021] The work station is now ready for use. A roll of paper isselected from the compartment 10 and placed onto the roll holding means.The element 15 is shaped to be inserted into the core of a roll of paper13, while the other element 16 supports the other end of the roll 13 andpartially encompasses the roll 13. The configuration of these elementsprovide a convenient, simple, and economical method for loading,unloading, and dispensing from a roll 13. The element 15 restricts theaxial motion of the roll and aligns the paper with the edge of an endpanel. The element 16 helps hold the roll radially during a dispensingaction and allows the paper to unwind onto to the top surface 18. Itshould be noted that the paper is unwound with the decorative side down.This is an important feature that allows a user to place a box to bewrapped on top of the paper and rotate the box and the papersimultaneously, thus literally “wrapping” the box by winding the paperaround the box while the roll is unwinding. This is an easy operation toperform because the top surface supports the weight of the box and thehands are free to hold the paper and the box. It is also convenient anduser friendly because the correct amount of paper to be dispensed hasalready been determined without pre-measuring. One simply has to cut thepaper from the roll. This is now easily performed by using a simpleletter opener type of cutter 35. The cutter 35 is placed against thesurface of end panel 14, with the point 36 directed against the edge ofthe paper, and using the end panel 14 as a guide, move the cutter intothe paper forcing the blade 37 of the letter opener 35 to cut the paper.This type of cutter provides a quick, clean cut and is much easier touse than scissors. If the paper needs to be cut to width, the box andpaper can be turned 90 degrees, the paper is unwound from the box andlaid flat on the top surface 18 and cut as before using the letteropener type cutter 35. The paper has now been cut to length and widthand is ready to be wrapped around the box. The paper is wrapped aroundthe box and held in place by one hand while the other hand is easily andconventiently able to dispense tape from the dispenser 30 because it issecurely held by the tab31. Since it gnerally requires four to six tapedispensing operations to securely tape the gift wrapped box, thedispensing operation is now an easy task. The roll of paper may now beunloaded and removed from the work station 10, placed in the compartmentfor storing, and a new decorative roll is loaded and ready for anothergift.

[0022] Another feature of the invention is that it is very portable andmay be used in many different locations other than a table or on afloor. Many people wrap gifts in the privacy of their bedroom and usethe bed as a table. The present invention provides all of theconveniences of wrapping as above by providing a sturdy, work surface,ergonomically designed paper and tape dispensing, organization andstorage. Another feature of the invention is that the work surfaceprovides a visual aid for measuring the amount of paper to dispense. Thepreferable size of the work station is about 36″ in length, 24″ inwidth, and 2-6″ in depthh. When a box is placed on the compartment 10,it may be rolled lengthwise and widthwise over the top surface to guageand determine the girth of the box and its corresponding size of paperneeded for wrapping. The paper can then be correctly dispensed, cut, andready to for wrapping.

[0023] Additional features may also be added to provide moreconvenience, such as adding a handle 22 for carrying and storing theinvention on a wall. A longitudinal slot 21 cut into the top surfacenext to end panel 14 may provide a better guide for the cutter 35 duringa cutting operation. A slot 25 to hold and receive the cutter 35 so thecutter has a place to be put and does not get lost may also be added andbe a useful improvement to the present invention.

I claim:
 1. A wrap work station for holding and dispensing materialsemployed for wrapping boxes and other articles comprising: a) arectangular compartment providing a storage means for storing rolls ofwrapping paper, ribbon, name tags, tape, wrapping tools and otherrelated items, comprising a top surface for supporting said articles,end panels, a bottom panel, and an opening for inserting items into saidcompartment, b) a roll holding means for holding and dispensing rolls ofpaper onto said top surface, wherein said holding means is supportablyattached to the exterior of one of said end panels, c) a tape dispenserholding means for removably securing common scotch tape dispenser to theexterior of another one of said end panels.
 2. The invention as claimedin claim 1, wherein said roll holding means removably attaches to saidend panel.
 3. The invention as claimed in claim 2, wherein said rollholding means comprises a first element that supports said roll of papertangentially at one end of said roll, and a second element thatrestricts the axial movement of said roll whereby the edge of said paperis aligned with one of said end panels during a roll dispensingoperation;
 4. The invention as claimed in claim 3, wherein said firstelement comprises a cylindrical rod or bar protruding perpendicular fromsaid end panel, said second element comprises a round rod shaped forinsertion into the core of said roll of paper whereby roll is axiallyrestricted in one direction, thus allowing said roll to be loaded andunloaded from said roll holding means.
 5. The invention as claimed inclaim 1, wherein said tape dispenser holding means employs a frictionalfit between the core of said tape dispenser and a cylindrical elementattached perpendicularly to said end panel.
 6. The invention as claimedin claim 1, wherein said work station comprises a holding means forcarrying or for hanging said work station in storage.
 7. The inventionas claimed in claim 1, and comprising one or more divider plates withinsaid compartment providing additional storage compartments.
 8. Theinvention as claime in claim 2 wherein said roll holding means comprisesa rod held between two of said end panel extended from said compartmentand employed as a means for holding said rod.
 9. The invention asclaimed in claim 1 whereby said top surface includes a longitudinal slotthat provides a guide for receiving a common letter opener type ofcutting device for cutting the paper during a cutting operation.
 10. Theinvention as claimed in claim 2, werein said roll holding meanscomprises a rod held between two of said end panels extendend from saidcompartment and employed as a means for holding said rod.
 11. A storingand dispensing container for rolls of paper comprising a top surface,end panels, a bottom panel, and an opening for inserting rolls of paperinto said container, a.) a roll holding means for holding and dispensingrolls of paper onto said top surface, wherein said roll holding means issupportably attached to the exterior of one of said end panels, b.) atape dispenser holding means for removably securing common scotch tapedispensers to the exterior of another said end panel.
 12. The inventionas claimed in claim 11 wherein said roll holding means removablyattaches to said end panel.
 13. The invention as claimed in claim 12wherein said roll holding means comprises a first element that supportsthe base of said roll tangentially and extends partially around thecircumference of said roll whereby the radial movement of said roll isrestricted by said element and its attached said end panel, and a secondelement shaped for insertion into the core of said roll.
 14. Theinvention as claimed in claim 11 wherein said tape dispenser holdingmeans employs a frictional fit between the core of said tape dispenserand a cylindrical element attached perpendicular to said end panel. 15.The invention as claimed in claim 11 wherein said container comprises aholding means for carrying or for hanging said container on a wall forstorage.
 16. The invention as claimed in claim 11 and comprises a cutterholding means comprising a slot cut into the top surface of saidcontainer and of sufficient depth and width to recieve and hold uprighta common letter opener type of cutter.
 17. The invention as claimed inclaim 11 and comprises a cutting slot cut into the top surface of saidcontainer whereby a common letter opener cutter may be inserted intosaid slot whereby said slot provides a guide for said cutter during acutting operation of said paper.
 18. A method for cutting sheets ofmaterial from a continuous roll of material comprising a letter openertype of cutter and a guided means for said cutter whereby said cutter isheld against said means during a cutting operation.
 19. The method asclaimed in claim 18 whereby said guided means comprises a longitudinalslot in a longitudinal planar member, said slot is of sufficient widthand depth for recieiving and containing said cutter during a cuttingoperation.